MotoGP: Rossi Still Hampered by Motocross Injuries

Valentino Rossi has admitted to high amounts of unexpected pain during his first bout back on the bike after he sustained chest and torso injuries during a crash last week.

AS no stranger to suffering for his sport, Valentino Rossi knows full well the amount of blood, sweat, and tears that goes into being a MotoGP World Champion. It goes without saying that participation in such a dangerous sport is not for the faint-hearted, with riders tumbling from their two-wheeled metal bullets at speeds above 150 mph. While the majority of these incidents are typically found during race day when the pressure for a win reaches fever pitch, there are occasions where potentially race-affecting injuries can occur even during training.

Movistar Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi has had a run-in with such an incident last week, as he sustained injuries at a Motocross track in Italy while training between MotoGP races. Rossi was admitted to a nearby Italian hospital for inspection and was cleared for release with noted injuries to his chest at abdomen. The Italian rider was eager to hit the track in anticipation of the Grand Prix at Mugello, but has found that his injuries may be more trouble than they’re worth.

(Source/Twitter)

Rossi has been struggling to squeeze the most out of his performance during the practice sessions at his Italian home circuit, saying that he was surprised to find that he had a large surplus of pain shoot through his body whenever he moved to open the throttle on his bike:

“Difficult day. “I have to struggle a little bit, because Mugello, with a MotoGP bike, with this temperature is already very difficult physically even if you are at 100%.

This morning I suffer a lot, especially in acceleration, because I have pain in my right arm to stay on the bike. When I open the throttle and I had to hold onto the handlebar with all my strength, I had a lot, a lot of pain. Sincerely, I didn’t expect this. Was a surprise.”

Valentino Rossi

(Mirco Lazzari gp/Getty Images)

While Rossi was able to stem the tide of pain with painkillers supplied by the kind folks over at the Clinicia Mobile, he has turned his focus from his aching body to tuning the balance of the bike so it can be ready to hit the track running come race day:

“We have to work, we have to try to improve, and we also hope that the situation of my physical condition will get better, and especially Sunday, because the race will be very hard.”

Valentino Rossi

Should Rossi’s condition not improve, the grizzled Italian rider would do well to simply focus on finishing his race at Mugello and pick up points to take into the rest of the season – particularly after that disastrous end to a potential second-place finish at Le Mans.

Nikola is a carbon-based life-form residing on Earth dimension C-137. Lover of all things fast and furious. When he's not tapping away at a keyboard, he can be found aimlessly drifting in cyberspace, looking for signs of intelligent life.